Vol. 222 No. 14
asked the Minister for Education the present position regarding Reaglass national school, Castleisland, County Kerry; whether it is proposed to close this two-teacher school; and if he is aware of the objections of local parents to the closure of the school on the grounds that it would mean that their children would have to travel four miles to Castleisland school.
25.
asked the Minister for Education whether any decision has yet been reached regarding the future of Camp national school, County Kerry; and whether he is aware that a site was purchased for the erection of a new school more than two years ago; and that local parents of both Catholic and Protestant children who attend this school deeply resent the idea of sending their children to school in another parish.
With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 24 and 25 together.
What is involved in these cases as in similar cases, is the provision of the best possible education for the children concerned. Their transport to larger schools even if distances of three or four miles were involved as against their having to walk, very often in cold and wet, to their present schools could not be regarded as a valid argument against seeking better education for them. These matters as well as any representations made by or on behalf of the parents will be taken into account when final decisions in the case of the Reaglass and Camp schools are being made.
